Former Celtic prospect Ben Doak hailed as he takes huge first-team step

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Former Celtic prospect Ben Doak took a huge step at Liverpool on Wednesday evening as he made his debut for the Anfield side.

The 16-year-old came off the bench for the Reds last night as they were held to a 0-0 draw in the Carabao Cup by English League One side Derby County.

At one stage, it looked as though the youngster could have to step up to the spot. However, Liverpool goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher was the hero in the end.

It has been quite the 12 months for the Scotland under-21 international, who is only going to turn 17 on Friday.

Doak’s year started out at Celtic with the club’s B side and scored on his first appearance in the Lowland League last December.

After only a handful of appearances in Tommy McIntyre’s side, the winger was drafted into first-team action and handed a surprise debut against Dundee United.

Shortly after, Doak made his second appearance for the first team, coming off the bench in the emphatic 3-0 Glasgow derby victory over Rangers at Celtic Park earlier this year.

Although the club would have been desperate to keep ahold of a fantastic prospect, it ultimately wasn’t to be, with Doak instead choosing to make the move south of the border, joining Liverpool.

Since his arrival in the academy setup at Anfield, the youngster has gone from strength to strength, performing in the club’s UEFA Youth League side and under-21s.

His impressive displays led to him being handed an opportunity off the bench against Derby on Wednesday, where he left one man in particular impressed.

Speaking after the game, Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp praised the former Lennoxtown prospect as he opened up on the sort of player he sees Doak as.

He said [Liverpool FC]: That’s Ben. His instructions were easy: do what you do all the time. He is really a lively boy, a smart player, good dribbler, fast, can use both legs.

“He’s good. It was nice to watch, really nice to watch – him coming in and immediately, a lot of things are obviously natural to him, which is really helpful.

“I am pretty sure his family was here tonight. I can remember when I saw the family at the AXA [Training Centre] when we signed the boy, how excited everybody was.

“Now, having this night, it’s the next step, it’s cool. He showed up, obviously.”

No one can begrudge Ben Doak of move as Liverpool follow through on first team plan; Celtic must learn for the future.

When it was announced that Doak was moving to Liverpool, although it might have been slightly frustrating, no one could really blame the youngster for joining one of the biggest clubs in the world.

However, some sections of the support seemed to hold a grudge, with predictions suggesting he wouldn’t be near the Liverpool first team.

Well, Doak has now taken that step up and shown his worth. Although it might be a little longer before his next appearance, he is clearly the real deal.

We could go on all day about the disappointment of losing a player like Doak and what Celtic could have done. But, ultimately, we are well past that stage.

What it is important that the club do now is to learn from this situation and make sure we don’t see a similar development any time soon, losing a top prospect for such a small fee.

Personally, I wish Doak all the very best of luck for the future, and it is exciting to see one of the club’s former academy players succeed at a huge club.

That doesn’t mean I’m not frustrated by the situation, and fingers crossed Celtic learn their lesson for the future academy prospects rising through at Lennoxtown.

In other news, Celtic B make it back-to-back victories with an emphatic away win.